The launching ceremony of the Porto Executive Academy took place on the 6th of June at Palácio da Bolsa. The Port Executive Academy (PEA) emerges as a clearly differentiated response to the real need to support Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and from an in-depth reflection on management-related themes.
Starting activities are foreseen for September/October. The PEA is regarded as relevant for in executive education[SR1] , in-company training and technical and applied scientific research. As Rosario Gamboa, President of P.PORTO, also stresses, the goal is to open a public debate focused on the business sector of the northern region of Portugal and its specific needs, promoting strategies that contribute to the effective success of the business, particularly SMEs.
Changing the way businesses are managed is also changing the way societies develop, said Armando Silva, coordinator of the PEA, contradicting the idea of executive education as an academic reflection. The Porto Executive Academy arises in this scenario with a transdisciplinary focus: on the one hand, academic and scientific skills, on the other business and institutional know-how.
Transversal competences, the connection between hard and soft skills, and networking geared for business development are key concepts for executive training.
The Ambassador António Martins da Cruz, one of the teachers of the Post-Graduate Course in International Business and Investment Opportunities (Oportunidades Internacionais de Negócios e Investimentos) claims that it "also prepares the business community to handle an increasingly complex and globalized market", demonstrating how economic diplomacy enhances and streamlines companies’ performance in the international market.
The event was also cause for celebrating important protocols, of which we highlight the strategic cooperation agreement with IESIDE/Afundación, the first Galician business school, with almost 30 years of experience in executive education.
